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Mon 21 Jan 2008, 9:58 GMT
KISUMU, Kenya (Reuters)- Niva Ndubi cries as she recalls the moment a stray bullet tore through her shack made of iron sheets, killing her mother.

"I was in the neighbour's house when mummy was shot," the nine-year old told Reuters, sobbing.

"I could not face seeing her die. I last saw her in the morning after breakfast. I went to play and left her arranging our clothes. I miss her so much," she said.

Judith Naliaka died as youths clashed with police in Kenya's western city of Kisumu, the latest in weeks of bloody unrest which has seen homes and shops burned to the ground.

"We accuse the government for Judy's death," Rose Chakra, one of her cousins, told Reuters. "The police just shot her as she sat in her house."

Her shack stands silent, a hole in its back wall where the bullet entered, clothes and cooking utensils strewn on the floor between two wooden beds exactly as they were when Naliaka was rushed to hospital.

She brought up her daughter alone, and the young girl is now living with neighbours in shacks which lie metres from the railway line running from Kenya to Uganda.

More than 650 people have died across Kenya and a quarter of a million been displaced since President Mwai Kibaki's disputed re-election on Dec. 27 triggered some of the country's worst unrest in living memory.

Kisumu -- Kenya's third largest city and the opposition stronghold -- has witnessed some of the heaviest violence.

The clashes have paralysed Kisumu. Piles of rubble litter streets where shopping malls once glittered.

Businesses and houses belonging to members of Kibaki's Kikuyu ethnic group -- Kenya's largest and most economically powerful -- or those perceived to support him were looted or razed after his swearing in on Dec. 29.

"My shop and two houses were burnt down. I lost everything that I made for the last 25 years in Kisumu. I just want to leave this city," said Joseph Kahuti at a Kisumu police station, where 65 victims are sheltering, awaiting transport out of town.

Joseph Kariuki, 35, a Kikuyu born and raised in Kisumu, says he will not leave the city where his father settled in 1934.

Unlike many others, Kariuki did not lose anything during the riots. He speaks Luo, the language of opposition leader Raila Odinga's ethnic group, and his linguistic skills saved him.

"I speak better Luo than Kikuyu. I've never left Kisumu and I don't even know where my father hails from in central Kenya. Kisumu is my home and I have nowhere to run to," he said.

The orphaned Ndubi, who is in primary school and has just received a sponsor willing to pay for her education, wants to continue with her studies.

"This is the only present my mum left me," she said, pointing at a tattered English grammar book in her school bag.

"I want to be a teacher when I grow up. English is my favourite subject in school," she said.

Kenya govt turns on critics, Odinga hailed

NAIROBI, Jan 21 (Reuters) - Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki's government went on the offensive against critics on Monday, condemning opposition economic boycott plans as "sabotage" and summoning the British ambassador for a ticking off.

Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga returned to the opposition stronghold of Kisumu, for the first time since the disputed election of Dec. 27, to a rapturous welcome from supporters at a memorial for those killed in unrest.

"I'm saddened by the brutal killing of innocent unarmed people demonstrating peacefully," Odinga told Reuters as thousands sang his name and six coffins of people said to be shot by police were laid out in a stadium in the western town.

"Kibaki has proved he has no respect for democracy. I'm the rightful, elected president."

About 650 people have died in violence since Kibaki's re-election last month, and 250,000 people have also been displaced in a country that is more used to receiving refugees from war-torn neighbours like Sudan and Somalia.

Most foreign and local observers say the poll was flawed, but the government says the opposition pre-planned violence.

The crisis has damaged one of the continent's most promising economies, cut off supplies to neighbours, and threatened to taint Kibaki's reputation as the man who democratised Kenya after the 24-year rule of President Daniel arap Moi.

In an increasingly militant reaction to criticism from abroad, Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula summoned Britain's High Commissioner Adam Wood to express displeasure.

Officials are particularly irate at comments by Meg Munn, parliamentary undersecretary of state for the Foreign Office, that Britain has "not recognised" Kibaki's government.

"Our elections don't need a stamp of authority from the House of Commons," Wetangula told reporters. British officials confirmed the meeting, but offered no more details.

The opposition has vowed to continue street rallies from Thursday and also called for a boycott of companies owned by Kibaki allies. They include Equity Bank, Brookside Dairies and bus companies CityHoppa and Kenya Bus.

"Sabotage of companies (is) illegal and an insult to Kenyans," the government said in a statement, adding that ODM leaders would be held accountable for any damage.

The boycott call may be more symbolic than real, however, given that many of Kenya's poor use Equity because of its accessibility and low charges, while commuters in long queues may not want to wait even longer by shunning certain buses.

In the latest violence, three people were hacked to death in ethnic fighting in a Nairobi slum on Sunday, while police said four people died in violence related to land disputes in the volatile Rift Valley.

In jittery Kenyan markets, the shilling currency hit a 10-month low against the U.S. dollar on Monday.

In Kisumu, devastated by riots and protests, residents whistled, banged drums and marched in ceremonies both honouring the dead and celebrating Odinga.

"We have come both to mourn and to happily welcome our president back home," Rose Akinyi, 35, a tailor, while dancing to a dirge from the local Luo culture.

In the latest international mediation attempt, former U.N. secretary-general Kofi Annan was due to fly into Kenya to start talks with both sides on Tuesday. Diplomats hope he can bring Kibaki and Odinga into some sort of power-sharing arrangement, possibly before a fresh vote in the east African nation.

"It seems every time we vote, we bring a bloodbath upon ourselves," said a Nairobi housewife, Joy, who asked for her surname not to be used. "Why would we want another election?" (Additional reporting by Guled Mohamed in Kisumu, Kate Kelland and Katherine Baldwin in London; Editing by Giles Elgood)

Kenya: Nakuru Town Eyes Displaced Investors

Nakuru, the Rift Valley town that has become a haven for thousands of people displaced, is promoting itself as the investment destination of choice for businesspeople who have fled violence in western towns of Kisumu, Kericho and Eldoret.

Promoters say the cosmopolitan town, which is Kenya's fourth largest, has proved its worth as an investor-friendly environment by remaining free of the violence that has rocked the country since President Kibaki was declared the winner of the December 27 poll.

Since Kenya returned to multi-party politics in 1992, various regions and towns have fallen victim of ethnic flare-ups, but Nakuru has been spared.

Investors are generally known to be shy of turbulence of the type that has gripped the lakeside town of Kisumu and Eldoret in the past three weeks.

Reports say a large number of investors have fled western Kenya after their property was destroyed by rioting mobs and their lives threatened.

Investors will always walk out in droves from towns they perceive to be prone to civil instability as the cloud of uncertainty that usually hangs over such centres prevents business executives from making long-term decisions.

Nakuru is quickly positioning itself as the destination of choice for such investors with reports that the newly-elected council is already working on an investment package.

Situated next to the world famous Lake Nakuru, tourism and related services have been the mainstay of economic activity in the town.

Mr Boniface Muhia, the chairman of the Nakuru chapter of Kenya National Chambers of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI), said the value of property in the town had risen sharply in the past four years as the tourism industry grew to stand among the drivers of economic growth in the country.

Mr Muhia said that with efficient management, Nakuru could reap from the mass exodus of businesspeople from western Kenya some of who have been making enquiries for property.

Demand for land has specifically risen this month boosting prices by wide margins. Last year, the Municipal Council wrote to the Ministry of Lands seeking for new areas of expansion.

In his letter, the Town Clerk Mr A. Leina reckoned that more than 60 per cent of the council's gazetted territory (188 sq km) had been hived off and transferred to the Kenya Wildlife Service without compensation.

The council therefore wants the municipality's territory, which currently stands at 102 sq km, doubled to cater for industrial expansion and increased settlement.

These moves are expected to intensify calls for the elevation of the town to a city status after Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu.

The council's 1999 Strategic Structure Plan indicates that despite the rise of tourism as a key revenue earner, the town's economy is still largely dependent on its rich agricultural hinterland.

Over the past five years, the growth of small-scale agriculture in the peri-urban areas of Bahati, Kiamunyi, Engashura, Kiamunyeki and Mwariki has seen an equally robust increase in agro-processing industries in the town.

These small-scale industries have in turn attracted a significant number of financial service providers such as banks, insurance companies and micro-lenders.

There are more than 100 industrial establishments including grain milling and storage, processing of cooking oil from agricultural raw materials, agro-chemical production, soaps, textile, blankets and dairy farming in the town.

In the Central Business District, commercial activities involve retailers such as supermarkets and hardware shops.

Observers however warned that Nakuru's potential to emerge as a commercial giant in the Rift Valley is tied to its location at the centre of what has been declared an unstable geological zone.

This is particularly limiting to the development of real estate in the town that is said to be vulnerable to earth tremors and volcanic activity.

The town's infrastructure is also seen to be lagging behind those of its rivals such as Kisumu and Eldoret that have airports and are served by scheduled flights.

Besides, Kisumu - on the shores of Lake Victoria - is also a port city that is linked to neighbouring Uganda and Tanzania by water.

Housing, which is the largest user of space in the municipality, is however seen to present the best opportunity for new investors.

Statistics indicate that by 1999, Nakuru had only 6,956 public housing units, 5,434 of which are owned by the Municipal Council of Nakuru while the remaining 1,522 units belong to the central government and public corporations.

The private sector remains the top provider of housing in the town. Past studies have indicated that almost 90 per cent of Nakuru residents are tenants while an insignificant 10 per cent occupy own units.

The majority of the town's population live in unplanned settlements of Kivumbini, Mwariki, Pondamali, Bondeni, Kwaronda and Kaptembwa estates that are not served with municipal services.

Kenya: More Lives Lost

The Orange party leader Mr Raila Odinga spoke of peace "returning soon" as the Government made an important concession by allowing today's mass funeral service in the first ever sign of softening up.

But there was widespread outrage over the Kalonzo Musyoka-led mediation team, on a day 26 more lives were violently snuffed out.

In the midst of all this, the Catholic Church's John Cardinal Njue sent out a passionate plea to President Kibaki and Mr Raila Odinga: Swallow your pride, sit down and talk so that you save this country before it is too late.

The prelate, who was presiding over mass at St Augustine Catholic Parish, Juja, added: "Go beyond where you are. Look ahead and realise that for Kenya to be peaceful, for current tribal divisions to end and for the killings of innocent Kenyans to stop, you must dialogue".

Police pursue rival groups who fought in Huruma Estate in Nairobi on Sunday. At least two people were hacked to death and many more injured. Picture by George Mulala

But as he spoke of ODM's willingness to dialogue, Raila told a congregation at the Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) Holy Trinity Parish in Kibera - a slum that has bore the brunt of the post-election violence - that the supporters of the wounded Orange party have urged him to stand firm and not retreat.

"Peace will soon prevail even if it means that we negotiate with a thief if that is what it will take to bring it," Raila said without elaborating.

But the Lang'ata MP cautioned the Government against any tricks.

Speaking on the eve of a week in which mediation talks are expected to take centre stage with the arrival of former United Nations Secretary-General, Mr Kofi Annan, Raila said the church had an obligation to stand against injustices and defend democracy.

He, however, said he regretted that a section of the church leadership had already taken sides with the 'troublemakers'.

"It is hypocritical to see that some church leaders are siding with the people who have snatched democracy away from the citizens, hence the cause of trouble," Raila said.

Quoting Martin Luther King, Raila said: "I have a dream that one day the people of this county shall not be judged by their tribe but by the content of their character".

He referred to the political impasse gripping the country as a "temptation" saying ODM "shall overcome the injustices no matter how long it takes".

Raila made these remarks even as the country remained on the international radar. Both the World Bank and the African Development Bank said they would continue to monitor developments in Kenya closely and would keep their programs under review depending on the unfolding scenario.

By licensing the planned ODM mass prayers for last week's victims of a deadly police clampdown on protesters, the Government made a huge step in limiting - if not altogether eliminating - the violence, hooliganism and unprecedented scale of destruction witnessed since the declaration of Mwai Kibaki as the winner of the presidential elections described as seriously flawed.

"The service will go on as planned. I want to assure religious leaders behind the event that police would not stop it," Mr Simon Kiragu, the Kisumu OCPD told The Standard yesterday, when asked if the mass planned for the Moi Stadium from 10am today had been sanctioned.

He added: "We know it will be an emotional service but we urge politicians and religious leaders to take control and restrain their supporters from engaging in acts of violence".

Police have shot dead at least 70 people in Kisumu alone since the post-election violence erupted.

This week promises to be another tough one after ODM renewed calls for mass action, expected to ignite fresh duels on the streets over the political crisis that has paralysed the country.

ODM also pulled out another card off its sleeve after it added economic boycott of certain companies and products, beginning this week to pile more pressure on Government.

Another storm was also brewing around the 10-member committee led by VP Kalonzo picked to spearhead talks by President Kibaki.

Several Opposition MPs, church leaders and Nobel Peace laureate Prof Wangari Maathai have all taken issue with Kalonzo leading the talks.

But three Cabinet ministers and an MP yesterday came to Kalonzo's defence and told Raila to embrace dialogue instead of taking issue with the composition of the Government team.

Kenya opposition stronghold devastated by unrest

Kenya govt turns on critics, Odinga hailed

Kenya: Nakuru Town Eyes Displaced Investors

Kenya: More Lives Lost